Her Majesty's Government: improve the welfare of domestic rabbits in the UK

The suffering rabbits endure is not tolerable - we have the responsibility to change this. They are the most abused and negelcted domesticated animal in the UK.
from the BBC:
Rabbits are the most abused domestic pet in England and Wales, with 35,000 abandoned every year, says the RSPCA.
The animal charity said a survey found that 70% of rescued rabbits had been kept hutched 24 hours a day.
Almost 40% had had no food, and half had been living in filthy conditions, it told the BBC.
It found that people bought rabbits but then quickly lost interest. On average the abandoned pets it came across had been dumped after just three months.

When I emailed my MP about this he passed me onto DEFRA without my permission. The DEFRA rep just cut and pasted the standards he believes is acceptable for rabbits:

"...of sufficient size to allow the rabbits to move around and to feed and drink without difficulty and to allow them all to lie on their sides at the same time; and of sufficient height to allow the rabbits to sit upright on all four feet without their ears touching the top of the hutch or cage"

COULD YOU LIVE LIKE THAT? COULD YOUR DOG OR CAT? WHO WOULD THINK THAT IS ACCEPTABLE AND THINK THEY ARE NOT CRUEL?

IT IS TIME FOR A CHANGE AND FOR THE UK TO STEP UP ITS STANDARDS

RABBITS SHOULD NOT BE CLASSIFIED AS FARM ANIMALS  - THEY ARE THE THIRD MOST POPULAR PET IN THE UK

The Animal Welfare Act only gives them a life of imprisonment and no space to run. How can a creature designed to run and jump have any quality of life other than a bad one in a hutch or a small cage?

Also it should be banned that pet shops and garden centres can sell them. It should be only that licensed and inspected breeders can breed rabbits for sale.

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